U.S. Pat. No. 4,497,196 describes in detail a stamping and forming machine comprising one or more machine modules, each of which has a pair of opposed tooling assemblies which are reciprocated towards and away from each other. The strip material is fed in a vertical plane along a strip feed path which extends between the tooling assemblies so that operations, such as forming and punching operations, can be carried out on the strip. When a punching operation is carried out, one of the tooling assemblies will comprise a die assembly having an opening therein which receives a punch mounted in a punch assembly. During each cycle, then, a small section of scrap material, commonly referred to as a slug, is produced, and must be removed from the vicinity of the punch assembly and the die assembly. Because of the fact that the tooling assemblies of machines of the type shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,497,196, are in a horizontal orientation, disposal of the slugs presents a problem which is not encountered with conventional stamping and forming machines in which the punch assembly reciprocates along a vertical path and the slugs can fall away from the tooling under the influence of gravity.
Application Ser. No. 89191 filed Aug. 25, 1987 (14059) describes a die assembly having a system for continuously disposing of the slugs produced during operation of the machine. The die assembly has a slug-receiving passageway extending therethrough from the die opening to a slug outlet which communicates with a slug-receiving cavity which is also in the die assembly. The slugs produced are thus stacked in the passageway and, during each operating cycle, the endmost slug is ejected at the slug outlet and falls into the slug-receiving cavity. The slugs are removed from this cavity by means of a conveyor belt which transports the slugs laterally to a disposal station which is beside the reciprocating die assembly. The slug disposal system described in the above identified application is effective to remove all the slugs produced during operation of the machine; however, it has been found that a problem is encountered when it is necessary to change the tooling in the machine by removing a removable portion of the die assembly and replacing it with a die assembly of a different design. When the machine is stopped, and the removable portion of the die assembly is taken from the machine, the slug-receiving passageway will be filled with a continuous stack of slugs remaining from previous operating cycles, and it has been found that some of these slugs will usually spill from the passageway and fall into portions of the machine from which the removable die section was taken. The slugs thus spilled must be carefully removed before another die section is installed in the machine for the reason that the slugs adhere to surfaces against which the die assembly bears during operation. Removal of the slugs can be a tedious and time-consuming operation; the slugs may be quite small and may be of very thin material, for example, 0.010 inches or less. Furthermore, the slugs and the bearing surfaces in the machine are always coated with a thin film of lubricant, and the slugs tend to adhere to the surfaces on which they fall. The present invention is thus directed to the achievement of a means for retaining slugs when the dies are changed in the machine and preventing spillage of any slugs from any portions of the die assembly. The benefit of such a system is that tooling changes can be made much more rapidly and possible damage to the machine (resulting from slugs which were not removed during a die change) is prevented.